


All birds, No bees

by Gabebabehot



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series)
Genre: Awkwardness, Blushing, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Maybe - Freeform, Non-Canon Relationship, Tea, Teenagers, blueberry muffins, lovebirds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-10-11
Packaged: 2019-04-14 17:56:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 16,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14141397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gabebabehot/pseuds/Gabebabehot
Summary: For Raven, Robin is a closed book she is dying to read.While Robin just wants to see her smile again.





	1. Chapter 1

Raven hovered over to the edge of the Teen Titan tower and lowered herself into a sitting position. Her hands slowly raised to take her hood off, letting her short purple hair flow in the cool autumn breeze. The sun was setting, only showing half of itself above sea level. It reminded Raven of herself, trying to hide her demon half. She took a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth, adjusting her legs to be crossed and her arms out. Meditation was the only way she could keep her cool lately. Immature pranks, nasty food fights, and obnoxious laughter engulfed the entire tower, forcing Raven to be out there on the roof. 

Time flew by too quick. A strained metal creek pulled Raven out of her trance.

“What?” she kept her position, eyes closed and all. 

“You’ve been up here for a long time, Raven” Robin’s voice made her open her eyes. She took one last deep breath of fresh air and settled back down on the edge, butt touching the icy edge. She saw the city lights contrast the now dark sky. She heard the roof latch close and soft footsteps approach her. She turned her head to watch Robin throw his legs over the edge and sit shoulder to shoulder with her. 

“What time is it?” she asked in her monotone voice, trying to hide a yawn. 

“Past midnight.” A chilled breeze hit Ravens exposed legs. She brought her knees into her chest and wrapped herself up in her cape. Robin’s arm draped across her shoulders and pulled her in to his side for warmth. “You don’t have to keep separating yourself from us.” He whispered, as if she wasn’t supposed to hear him. She shook her head.

“Sometimes I just need to be alone.” she responded, suddenly feeling uncomfortable under Robins arm. She pulled away from him slowly. 

“Come on, it’s cold, you can be alone in your room.” Raven slightly smiled, letting Robin know she agreed with the plan. They both got up and walked over to the latch. They climbed down and Robin escorted Raven to her room.

“Thanks.” She said to Robin. It wasn’t just for the walking, but for the understanding. 

“Anytime.” 

She used her powers to open up her door. Robin waited until they were fully closed to turn around and walk to his room.

In her room, a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. She looked at her full length mirror in the corner of her dark room. Her cheeks looked pink and felt warm even though she just got in from the cold. Her delicate hand reach up to unpin her cape, while the other held it in place. Slowly, she lifted it off her shoulders and hung it on the exterior of her closet for quick access. 

She ran herself a bath, never a shower, because who wants water droplets violently hitting their face? A peaceful tub full of soapy water was the best way to go for Raven, in which she had total control of the water. If she moved, the water moved with her. Lazily, Raven undressed fully, getting goosebumps all over her body. She slowly dipped her toes into the water and decided it was the perfect temperature for her to climb in. As she laid her head on the cold porcelain tub, her body was engulfed in a lavender scent. Her cold legs warmed up fast, while her cheeks overheated. She placed her hands on either side of her face wondering what was going on. She was used to having control over her mind and body, so when her body surprised her like this, she panicked.

“Deep breathes,” she spoke softly to herself, letting her body relax back into the tub. Her eyes shut more forceful than necessary, creating a single wrinkle in her forehead. In through her nose, out through her mouth she breathed, slowly until her fingers turned into pasty prunes. She rose out of the tub and elevated a clean towel over to herself. Wrapping the towel around her short body, she stepped cautiously out of the tub and let the drain take the now cold water. The pajamas she most often wore laid underneath her soft purple blanket. She threw on the plain black boyish fit t shirt and the softest and shortest violet shorts. Raven found comfort in not wearing anything on her legs. The least restrained clothing was perfect for her, like her leotard moving and stretching with her, never holding her back. She controlled the fabric, not the other way around. 

She gently lowered herself onto her bed, using her powers to turn off the lights. She stared at the ceiling, not feeling tired because confusion rose to the surface. Warmth from her cheek had disappeared making her cold fingers touch chilled cheeks. The question of why they were pink in the first place played on loop in Raven’s head until her eyelids gave up and closed for the night. 

A loud knock on Ravens door startled her awake, frustrating her. 

“Raven! We’re going out to breakfast! You coming?” Beast boys’ annoying crackling teenage voice was not the first thing Raven wanted to hear in the morning. She rolled her eyes and rolled over facing her door. 

“Leave me alone.” She grumbled, half into her pillow. 

“What?!” Beast boy shouted louder. Raven’s eyes shot open, white coloring them in. She was prepared to ruin Beast boys day like he ruined hers. 

“Leav-” she began to say, but someone on the other side of the door finished for her.

“Leave her alone, she was up late last night.” Robin had calmly escorted Beast Boy away from Ravens door, and her wrath. 

“Thanks.” she whispered, wishing Robin had heard her. 

She was awake now, the sun seeping through beneath her black curtains. She rolled onto her back looking around her room. She wanted to read today, seeing as all she did last night was avoid people and meditate. She sat up and walked over to her duplicate leotards and picked out the first one within reach. Clothed, she threw her cape on and selected a random book from her bookshelf. Right before exiting the comforting confides of her room, she took a deep breathe. In through the nose, out through the mouth. 

Using both hands, she grabbed the book and held it against her chest. WIth her head down and hood up, she levitated into the kitchen hoping there was something to eat within the tower. 

“Morning,” someone said from Raven’s left side, a side she couldn’t see with her hood up. 

“Morning.” she whispered back, hoping it was loud enough for the person to hear. She set her book down on the counter gently. 

“The others went out for breakfast, we don’t have much.” Raven turned to face Robin who was drinking coffee out of the biggest mug the Titan tower had to offer.

“Rough night?” Raven asked quizzingly. Hadn’t he went to bed the same time as she? Robin let out a chuckle.

“Rough morning actually,” Raven’s head tilted to the right like a curious puppy.

“Hm?” 

“It’s nothing just woke up from a dream early and couldn’t go back to bed.” He tried to say casually, but Raven knew Robin’s dreams weren’t typical, often resembling nightmares. Her face softened. She wished she could help her team leader. He was strong. He didn’t deserve the turmoil of his thoughts being his downfall. 

“That sucks.” Raven's genius head decided that was the perfect response. Robin chuckled once more saying “Yeah,” and lifting his mug to his lips.

Raven turned herself around to face the fridge. As she opened it, the cold felt nice on her overheated cheeks. Her eyes shot wide open as she realized the sensation. The hand that wasn’t holding the fridge open snapped up to touch her face, feeling an unwelcome warmth upon her cheeks once again. Raven cursed under her breath, shaking her head lightly. 

“Hm?” Robin made a questioning noise towards Raven. His eyes shift to stare at the back of Raven’s hooded head. She slowly closed the fridge, not having really checked if anything was in it and responded.

“Maybe I should’ve went with them.” Raven’s voice was no more than a whisper, but the contrast of silence in the room made Robin hear her words clearly.

“Want to?” He placed his giant coffee mug down gently, as if not to scare off a small animal. Raven hesitantly turned around to face Robin. She didn’t want him to see her reddened cheeks so she kept her hood up and her head lowered. 

“I’ll go get some tea downtown.” She began to float towards the living room door that would let her out, but the sounds of soft footsteps catching up to her made her freeze in mid air. Robin caught up with Raven looking at her questioningly. 

“Am I not invited?” He asked, more jokingly than she had hoped. She wanted to say no, please leave me and my bright cheeks alone, but her exterior harshness always faded when she looked at him. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw how his mask was raised up and his smile was curved one way. It was different from his intense gaze in combat, where his covered brows creased the center of his mask and his nostrils would flare with every heavy breath. Raven lowered herself onto the ground, and slowly dropped her hood. Robin’s smile turned into a smirk. Not cocky per say, just proud. He was figuring out how to get Raven to communicate, to let down her walls and let someone in. That was his job though. As team leader, he needed to identify emotions in the team effectively. Everytime Beastboy felt invaluable, everytime Cyborg felt unhuman, everytime Starfire felt misunderstood, he was there. But with Raven it was everything, and nothing, yet something. He himself was mysterious, with no one knowing his true identity, but he faked it better than Raven. In some way, he saw a lot of himself in her, blocking people out and shutting down in her room. Not only is it something he has done, the way he conversed with Raven was how he wished someone would talk to him during those darker days when he was young. Cautiously and not expecting. He didn’t expect Raven to open up to him about what was going on, he just wanted to let her know he saw her, and even if she wished to be invisible, to him she never was. 

They walked out of the tower side by side, not speaking to one another. Raven liked that about Robin. They never needed to talk to fill the silence, they both enjoyed it while it lasted. Living with 3 big personalities really did take a toll on Raven, but Robin didn’t mind. He also had an authority unlike Raven, which when he needed to be alone, everyone left him alone. No one ever dared to disturb Robin while he was locked in his room multiple days in a row. 

The idea of no one disturbing Robin made Raven’s eyebrows furrow as she got onto the back of Robin’s motorcycle. If she had went by herself, she could have flown there by now and gotten her tea. She clutched onto Robin’s waist silently, keeping her eyebrows tightly knit together.

“Ready?” Robin asked as he revved his engine. Raven laid her head against Robin and nodded into his back. He understood and they were off. 

As Robin weaved dangerously through traffic, Raven’s mind wondered back to Robin, all alone, closing in on himself in a dark room like she would often do. The idea hurt her. Angered her. Why was no one seeing what was going on. His nightmares, his staying back from breakfast. Then the realization hit her. Hit her harder than Robin’s grip on the breaks as they arrive at the local tea shop. She saw it just now, she saw him. Her eyes went soft as she slowly removed herself from the back of the bike. He needed to be here, without the big 3, as much as she did.

They walked into the little shop, still not saying a word. Raven walked up to the counter and smiled lightly, knowing the young cashier knew her enough to know her usual order.  
“So 1 raven or 2?” She smiled looking back and forth between the two titans.

Robin looked up and saw the raven special plastered on the menu. It was a large cup of black tea and a blueberry muffin. He smirked once again at Raven as he walked up to the counter.

“Yeah, two.” He handed a 10 over to the cashier, paying for both. Raven’s cheeks did that thing again, a third time within 24 hours. 

They sat down in a booth closer to the back of the little cafe, as if Robin’s motorcycle wasn’t standing right outside with little boys crowding around it. From Raven’s seat, she saw everything the little boys were doing. They posed for photos, tried to sit on it, and one even pressed his face up against the glass to look for Robin. Facing away from the action, Robin stared at Raven’s face as her eyes observed and her smile shifted up slightly. 

“What?” he asked gently, not wanting to break her out of her trance, but needing to know what was going on in her head.

“Your bike has its own fan base.” She responded nodding towards the front store window. Robin peered over the booth, noticing the boy pressed up against the glass first. He waved frantically at Robin, making Robin smile and lightly wave back. Robin turned back to Raven to see her smiling. A bright full toothy grin. It lasted only seconds, but they felt like the best seconds in Robin’s life. He stared at her now in mild shock, not knowing what he did to make her smile like that but wishing he could do it again. She settled for a static expression now and looked at Robin, twisting her head slightly. In that moment she wondered who he was behind that mask and why did it feel like, right at that moment, that’s who she was seeing.  
Her cheeks deceived her again. Heat rose against her cheeks and she had to look away from Robins gaze. This time, the heats intensity hit her chest as well causing her to shift awkwardly in her seat. She hoped he hadn’t witnessed her bodily reaction, but he did. How could he not have? 

For the first time, Robin actually witnessed Raven’s blush. His stomach clenched but quickly relaxed, realizing that making someone blush wasn’t a bad thing. He affected her in a non life threatening way. This was a feeling he wasn’t used to. Robin dedicated his life to protecting people from evil, but also from himself. The lifestyle that he lived was always dangerous, all stemming from his acrobatic roots. He took a quick deep breath.

“It’s okay.” The words were supposed to reassure himself, but Raven understood them differently. 

“Sorry.” She whispered looking at her open palms in her lap. There was a thin layer of sweat on them, which she wiped off on her cape. 

“No, no I meant-” Robin was cut off by an adorable waitress in short black ponytails setting down two warmed muffins and hot teas on their table. 

“For the two cutie birdies!” She exclaimed in high pitched voice, annoying Raven. Her eyebrows furrowed and looked away while Robin nodded a thanks over to the waitress.

“Birdies.” Raven grumbled to herself, forgetting Robin’s hearing was good.

“Not cutie?” Her head snapped back to stare at Robin in shock. He had already grabbed a muffin ripping it apart with his hands. He was amused at Raven’s annoyance and it was written on his face. 

“I’m used to getting called that.” She said with a confident smirk. Robin choked lightly on his muffin.

“By who?” He asked, his voice muffled by crumbs. Raven raised her eyebrows for a quick second then squinted. “I mean not- I’m just wondering.” Raven sighed, realizing her joke wasn’t understood. 

“Just a joke.” She got a fork and slowly undressed her muffin bottom. Staring from the outside, she dug her fork into her muffin and brought it up to her mouth.

“Sometimes you’re more mysterious than me.” He said very seriously, making Raven spit out her muffin with laughter. No way in hell was she a bigger mystery than he was. He knew who her father was, was she liked to do for fun, where her favorite tea shop was. Although she was a closed book, Robin was a book in the basement of a library shut with a padlock.

“Me? I don’t wear a mask to bed.” She managed to say after some time of quiet giggling. 

“That’s not important.” His stare was intense, like she hit a soft spot. 

“Why did you come along?” She changed the topic which caught Robin off guard.

“You seemed like you needed a friend.” Raven nodded at the response and drank her tea slowly. After a long period of silent slurping and chewing, Robin spoke again. “We’re both a little weird huh?” Ravens face twisted, trying not to smile at Robin. 

“Yeah, a little.” They locked eyes in understanding and left the tea shop in a content silence.


	2. Cheesy Goodness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm adding on chapters!!!  
> I enjoy my birdies being cute!

It had been a couple of days since Raven’s little outing with Robin. Her books dominated her time along with meditation. She used that time to understand why her cheeks flushed pink, figuring it was from the direct attention. It was a Friday night, aka Movie night, also known as Raven’s worst nightmare. She would sit through rom coms or trashy action movies just so her teammates would be “graced by her presence.” She didn’t hate her teammates, they just forced her into situations that she hated. She looked up at her walk clock, seeing the big hand was reaching the 12 making it officially 8 pm. She levitated out of her room and down the hallway, hesitating before the big double door. Raven prepared herself to walk out into the living room by pulling on her hood. She took in her ritualistic deep breath before stepping in. 

Cyborg had ordered pizza that night for everyone. Raven knew she wouldn’t be able to eat alone in her room, especially with Robin around. She walked in on everyone already picking out a movie with their pizza’s in hand. Something in her chest clenched up. No one had told her that the pizza was already there. She reasoned with herself for a second, and she decided that it was best that they didn’t call her. It meant she could take her cheesy goodness silently and retreat back into her room. She levitated over to her pizza box, trying her best to not make a sound. Raven figured that between the big 3 bickering, her stealing a water bottle out of the fridge wouldn’t make a difference. As she closed the fridge door, a small breeze flicked her cape to the side. She turned around quickly, only to be face to face with her team leader. 

“I saved you a seat.” Robin whispered, still not disrupting the shouting in the background. 

“You shouldn’t have.” Raven said between gritted teeth. 

“Please?” Robin asked almost defeated. It was a tone Raven had never heard from Robin. She didn’t see her team leader in front of her, she saw the young kid he really was. Obviously they were all kids, being only teenagers, but Robin acted older, presented himself as wiser, and usually remained stern when socializing. But there he was, using the universal magic words to make Raven stay. Raven nodded once, levitating her water and pizza. Her hand made a “lead the way” motion toward Robin as he smiled. They walked over to the couch and Robin let Raven take the edge seat. It was a silent gesture that said Raven was free to leave whenever she felt the need to. She smiled to herself, appreciating Robin’s cautious approach. 

They sat there, close together, eating pizza and watched Starfire, Cyborg and Beastboy argue. From her left, Raven heard a low chuckle when Starfire called Beast boy a Beast Baby. She side eyed Robin but he wasn’t paying attention to her. He was wide eyed staring and listening intently to the big 3’s heated discussion. It was his own personal entertainment for the night. Raven turned her attention back to her teammates and began to listen intently.

“You pick the movie every freakin time!” Cyborg yells at Beast Boy.

“Because I like GOOD movies.”

“Friends Please The NoteBook is-”

“No one wants to watch-” Beast boy was cut off by Starfire.

“No one wants to hear your voice Beast BABY”

It was getting intense. Ravens eyebrows seemed to react to every instance of snappy comebacks, lifting as a sick burn was spat. She felt like she was watching real housewives of the titan tower. 

“Wanna make a bet?” Robin had leaned closer to Raven, whispering so only she could hear.

“Hm?” Raven had pizza in her mouth, but she was interested. 

“Starfire’s gonna win.” Raven frowned. Surely he didn’t think everyone would agree to watch the Notebook.

“I bet on the baby.” Robin smirked, realizing Raven was playing into his game. 

“If I win, I want homemade blueberry muffins.” 

“Whatever.”

“And if you win, I’ll leave you alone for an entire week.” Raven’s eyes widened. Although the thought of being alone all week wasn’t bad, it pissed off Raven. Did Robin really think that’s all she wanted? Sure she loved silence, but wanting to be alone and feeling alone were two different things and Robin made her feel like she wasn’t alone. Someone understood her. Not fully sure, but he took his time with her. 

“How about a month?” Raven spit out bitterly. She heard Robin inhale sharply, and she felt instant regret. But she was stubborn, and let her emotions take control. She stood up, grabbed her pizza, and walked out of the room swiftly. 

“Control, deep breaths.” She spoke to herself as she entered her room. Her hands glowed a fierce onyx and she knew her eyes were shining white. Maybe he didn’t get her? 

“Raven!” Obviously he had followed her. Raven rolled her eyes to herself. She wasn’t going to answer him, not when she was angry. 

Robin continued to speak. “I could never leave you alone for a week, let alone a month.” 

Raven’s eyes stopped glowing, her eyebrows relaxed. 

“Can I please come in?” Raven sat on her bed silently, considering what she should do. She had been so angry just a second ago and now she felt like it was all melting away. 

“I’m not leaving until you let me in.” Raven rolled her eyes again at Robin’s persistence, but a smile crept on her face. She lifted one hand and used her powers to open her door slowly.   
Robin stood outside, waiting to be invited in. Raven nodded while looking toward the ground. She was letting him in. 

He wandered in, planting each foot on the ground strategically. Raven had melted into a pudding like consistency and laid back on her bed, arms spread. Robin sat down next to her slowly, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. 

“Raven-” He began but she cut him off.

“I don’t hate you guys.” Raven rushed the words out, as if it was a deep dark secret. 

“Okay.” Robin smiled to himself. Ravens confession seemed child-like and he found it adorable. “Can I confess something too?” 

“Yeah.” Raven whispered to the ceiling. 

“I don’t hate you either.” Raven sat up quickly. She searched for his eyes, trying to figure out their exact position beneath his mask. They sat face to face for a second, Raven’s head slightly tilted. She was intrigued at how Robin spoke to her, as if every statement was deliberately planned to get a reaction from her. Robin’s smile grew and Raven’s in turn began to form.

Raven couldn’t figure what to say to Robin, so she did what friends did. She quickly wrapped her arms around Robins shoulders and placed her head in the crook of his neck. She was hugging him with all the force she had. Robin’s breath was forced out of his chest through the impact, but his arms lapped around Raven’s waist and pulled her in closer. He wasn’t going to waste such a rare moment. 

“Don’t tell anyone.” Raven whispered into Robin’s shoulder. Robin’s cheeks flushed a bright pink. Obviously she was talking about the hug, but the teenage boy in him couldn’t help his mind from going somewhere else. 

“Of- yeah, sure.” His voice shook a little as he couldn’t figure out the appropriate response. Raven adjusted her head, nuzzling herself deeper into the crook of Robins neck. 

“Thank you.” She whispered once again. 

“Anytime.” 

They separated and Robin hoped the darkness of Raven’s room was enough to cover his face. It wasn’t. Raven raised her hand up to Robins cheek, using the back of her hand as if she was checking the heat of a door in a burning building. 

“What made you blush?” Raven asked with genuine curiosity. Her cheeks did the same in front of Robin so many times, that Robin returning the involuntary gesture comforted her. Unfortunately for Robin, the question made him blush a deeper red and he looked away from Ravens doe eyed gaze. 

“Um-just this-” He cut himself off, not knowing if to lie or to explain his dirty mind. Raven caught on, and smirked. 

“Ah- cutie birdie got your tongue?” She marveled in the effect she had on Robin, regaining control of the situation. Raven witnessed his teeth pinch the side of his lower lip. She was jokingly teasing him, but his reactions seemed to be honest. 

It was her turn to blush, because she had just flirted with her team leader. And he liked it. Even worse, she liked it. This whole awkward and blushy exchange comforted Raven. She placed a hand on Robins shoulder, making him look at her. 

“Goodnight Robin.” She smiled sweetly at him. He returned the smile, got up and walked out of Raven’s room. Just before Raven shut the door, Robin turned around and said “Goodnight Cutie.” making Raven slam the door shut so he couldn’t see her bright pink reaction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Its not going to be a long fic but I'll be adding on more soon!


	3. Before the Storm

The word “cutie” replayed in Raven’s head the next day as she sat in the corner of the public library. This wasn’t a normal place for her to be on a Saturday morning, but she had to get out of the tower by herself. Cutie? Did he actually think she was cute? Or was it just a call back to the day in the tea shop? Was Robin just trying to make her blush? She was looking for answers, so she picked up a couple of modern romance books. Was being called cute romantic? Is blushing really that involuntary? Do teenagers just blush easily? Raven just needed to know what was going on inside her head, but she was too nervous to venture in blind.

In one book, a girl liked a boy for a long time and then they got together. In another book, a girl dressed as a boy and another boy questioned his sexuality. The book she was reading now had two boy choices, and Raven was rooting for the best friend, even though she new the bad boy would get the girl in the end. She set the book down on the floor in a huff. Her research wasn’t getting her anywhere. She levitated the books back into their respective areas and stood up, walking out into the sunshine. 

It was warm out today, warm enough for the team to have a game of football in the park. Raven had kindly declined the offer from Starfire, and avoided Robin’s inquiring stare. Sure her team members needed to exercise their bodies, but Raven's powers depend on her strength of mind. Knowledge, control, stability were the only things that mattered to Raven when she was fighting. But now, her ability to control also mattered when looking at Robin.

Here are the things she knew. Robin went out with her to the tea shop, paid for both of them, and witnessed her blush. Yesterday, he asked her to stay, said he couldn’t leave her alone for a long time, blushed at their physical contact, and called her cutie. That was all.

She was in control last night of herself. She decided to hug Robin, to joke with him, to flirt with him. No, something else caused her to flirt, to turn the tables on Robin. It was her need to control situations. Or not. She stopped walking down the busy street to consider the other option. She maybe, just maybe, liked Robin. Raven shook her head no, trying to forget that thought and continued walking.

Maybe he liked her? He was way too nice to her, too patient with her. But Starfire. She was his first kiss, and he always giggled at her quirks. He couldn’t like two people at once right? Exactly. Raven smiled to herself, figuring that their interaction the night before was jokingly platonic. 

Wandering aimlessly now, Raven considered going to the park to find her friends. She wouldn’t join the game, but observe. That’s what good writers did as stated by Spargo. With some concentration, Raven levitated over the tops of the buildings to find where the park was. She twirled in a circle, locating the acre of trees in the distance. Silently, she flew to the park and settled under a giant willow tree. 

It was Robin and Starfire versus Cyborg and Beast Boy. Everyone had smiles plastered on their faces as sweat dripped down their foreheads. They were having fun, and Raven smiled at that. Although she wasn’t directly involved, knowing that the people she cared about where happy brought her a sense of content. Raven pulled her knees up against her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

“Friend!” Starfire shouted across the park, pointing in the direction of Raven. 

“Aw Rae showed up!” Cyborg exclaimed. Raven slightly waved back at them.

About an hour later, all of the teen titans were sitting with Raven underneath the willow, panting from the game. Robin chose to lean back onto the tree trunk right next to Raven with one leg out and the other bent in a way that let him rest his forearm on his knee. Unknowingly, Raven began to stare at Robin. His sprawled out foot swayed side to side on its heel, and the hair on the back of his neck was slicked down with sweat. His chest was moving slower now, and his shoulders lowered, as if he was relaxing into the cool breeze. 

“Rae!” Cyborgs shout broke Raven’s stare.

“Hm?” Raven looked at her friends who where already staring at her. 

“Are you okay friend?” Starfire looked worried. 

“Yeah?” 

“So?” Beast boy asked exaggerating the “o” 

“Wha-”

“They asked you where you were this morning.” Robin said from beside Raven as he shifted into a criss cross sitting position. His knee was now touching Raven’s ankle. 

“Library.” Raven returned back to her monotone voice.

“Oh, fun!” Starfire smiled brightly. Beast boy began to talk and Raven zoned out. Her eyes scanned the friends in front of her. Cyborg was laying on his back in the grass, his shoulders lifting off the ground every time he laughed. Beast boy kept switching positions, even turning into a cat to curl up in a dirt patch in the sun. Starfire laid on her stomach, her chin in her hand and legs flailing in the air. Robin remained next to Raven, leaning forward when talking, and picking grass when listening. It was a peaceful sight. 

The wind grew harsher, pushing darker clouds to peak over the tall oaks of the park. 

“We should head back before the storm.” Robin pointed out to the other titans. Raven stood up slowly, regaining feeling in her legs. She wobbled, and used the trunk of the willow to steady herself. Robin witnessed Raven’s weakened knees and his brows scrunched up into a concerned frown. Cyborg led the way to his car, leaving Raven and Robin following slowly behind the big 3. Robin, out of hearing range, whispered to Raven from his side, “Are you okay?” Puzzled by the question Raven takes a second to respond.

“Um, yes?” Robin stared at Raven’s profile, unsatisfied with the answer. “Really.” Raven responded in her usual monotone voice. Robin hesitated to look away from Raven, but the answer did seem to relax his previously tensed forehead.

They arrived at the T-Car, and Raven dreaded sitting in the back. Beast Boy had called shotgun first, giving him dibs which Raven had learned to respect over the years. Fortunately Robin took the middle seat, letting Starfire sit on his left, and Raven on his right. Unspokenly, Raven thanked Robin with a small smile that flashed him as she buckled in her seatbelt. It was this odd connection that Raven felt toward Robin as if he could read her mind and guess her next move. Raven settled into her seat and looked out the window, imagining that the rain droplets were all the things she never told Robin, but he already knew. A warmth hovered over her bare knee before gently settling on her skin. The hand lightly squeezed Raven’s knee and let go returning back into Robin's lap. Raven’s smile grew, but she pulled up the hood of her cloak to cover it up so no one else could see. Except Robin, because Robin always saw her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really enjoy writing these birds being subtly cute!


	4. Nightmares

Raven hung up her cloak in its typical place and changed into her pjs. She brushed her hair and teeth, using her powers to do both at the same time. Her bed invited her to lay down and relax, but when she did, her eyes couldn’t remain closed. She tossed and turned, assuming her positioning was the reason she couldn’t sleep. After an hour, Raven realized something else was going on. Still investigating herself, Raven sat up and figured she was thirsty. Although her day was dull with just a visit to the library and park, Raven couldn’t remember if she had drank or eaten anything. With a groan, Raven left her bed annoyed at herself. She didn’t bother putting on her cloak, and walked out of her room and into the kitchen. It was dark in the tower, so Raven made sure to make no sound. She quickly grabbed a glass of water and began to wander back to her room. Something in her body told her to take a different route back, passing the boys rooms this time. Beast boys room had a distinct smell that invaded the beginning of the hallway. Raven pinched her nose as she walked past looking at the blue light coming from Cyborgs room. When he slept, he recharged, making the blue glow of his room to radiate from under his door. The last door Raven had to pass was Robins. Because he was a light sleeper, Raven decided to stop walking and levitate instead. As she got closer, a soft noise came from Robins room. She got closer to hear bed sheets shuffling and soft whimpers. Raven’s eyes widened realizing Robin was probably having one of those nightmares right now. 

She froze in place right in front of Robin’s closed door. Her mind raced through what actions she should take next. Should she continue and pretend she didn’t hear? Maybe wake him up? No option seemed satisfactory to Raven. Hearing Robin suffer sucked air out of Raven’s lungs and she considered a third option. She could help him, in his mind, right now. All she had to do was get back to her room and meditate and hopefully Robin would let her in. 

She sped flew back to her room, not caring that the water in her glass spilled all over the floor beneath. Her door levitated open as soon as it was in her line of sight, and she settled down onto her purple floor pillow. She crossed her legs on top of another, breathing deeply to slow her racing heart rate. Her eyes closed as her forehead smoothed. She had never done this before, but hearing Robin in distress made her need to try.

Raven’s mind entered into an all white room, separating herself from her body. A door hung above her head, the entrance into Robin's mind. She hesitated, but she reached for the door. She imagined herself floating up to it, but the door never got closer. Raven shook her head, realizing her powers weren’t working. This was Robin’s mind, where powers weren’t used at all. Raven looked down at her hands, noticing how delicate they looked without black energy engulfing them. She clenched them, creating small fists. Her booted feet took a power stance, mimicking Robin. WIth one quick look behind her, she stepped back and pounced up to the door, using her left foot to scrape up the white invisible wall in front of her to propel her to the doors edge. She fumbled with the door knob, and flopped onto the floor on the other side.

Raven, regretting the minimal amount of physical activity she did to stay in shape, got up and stretched. Not being able to rely on her powers, Raven had to prepare herself for obstacles Robin would be able overcome as fully human. As she bent down to touch her toes, a hot spotlight hit her. She looked up and began to hear the roar of a crowd. She tried to look around, but someone began pushing her forward. The spot light followed her, keeping her blind to everything around her. Suddenly, the pushing stopped and Raven stumbled onto her knees. The spotlight disappeared and Raven observed her surroundings. She was in an arena? No, the red and white striped tent told her otherwise. She was at the circus, with thousands of faceless bodys cheering. Frightened, Raven looked up to plan an escape route. Instead, she saw a couple on one tall podium, and a young blue eyed boy on other, with a coarse rope between them. 

“And now, for the main event, The Flying Graysons!” An unknown announcer shouted, causing the crowd to shout in excitement. The couple began their act, but the boy seemed to hesitate. Suddenly, the rope snapped, and the couple fell. Raven tried to fly up, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t save them. She closed her eyes tight, bracing to hear their bodies hit the cold gray cement beneath her feet. 

It never came. The crowds gasps disappeared and a cold chill rolled in. Droplets of water scattered on her shoulders and cheeks. Raven opened her eyes to see she was on a roof in a unknown city. The moon was hidden and dark clouds covered any visible stars. Shivers ran up and down Raven’s spine and she searched for something, anything, to help Robin. To help that little boy. 

She missed her cloak. The rain, even though it was a figment of the mind, soaked her t-shirt. Her exposed legs felt the chilling breeze of the cold night as she walked over to the edge. She locked eyes with a pair across the way. They resembled white slits on a fully grown shadow. Those eyes seemed cold and distant, like the moon in the sky. Raven lowered her gaze to the young boy next to him. He was older than the boy she saw earlier and missing his bright blue eyes. They’ve been dulled with pain, the pain of losing his parents. He was wearing a drenched red hoodie and blue dirty jeans. The dark shadow placed a hand on the young boys shoulder and the boy turned to him. The shadow handed him a mask, Robin’s mask. The boy covered his beautiful blues, shielding his old identity and creating a new one. 

Raven collapsed on her knees and clutched her chest. Of course Robin prefered to be alone. He had lost anyone he was ever close to before. Hidden underneath his mask, Robin’s bright blues masked his identity and his pain. A sea of emotions hit Raven all at once, but the one that won the battle was anger. Robin shouldn’t be hurting like this, he didn’t deserve any of this. Now he was suffering, alone. She looked up to try and see young Robin with the shadow but it disappeared again. Darkness engulfed the entire scene and the calming sound of rainfall turned into chilling silence. Raven began to look around, trying to find something, anything, that could help her help Robin. Suddenly, a stripe of light whipped across her line of sight. An evil laugh followed. Raven shot up into a fight stance, trying to remember any of Robin’s signature moves. The light ran past again, going in the opposite direction. The evil laugh after was replaced with a whisper. Into Raven left ear, a very memorable voice said. “You’re just like me.” Raven whipped her head around to find nothing once again. The anger in her boiled over. Of course Slade was torturing Robin, alongside everything else. 

Raven took a deep breath and her eyes turned white. Her powers, although weak, leaked through in Robin’s mind. She saw in the darkness Slade walking around Robin, who was fighting the air, kicking and punching in every direction. She raced over to him, jumping onto his back, Robin shouted and flailed, but Raven began patting his hair. 

“Shh, it’s just me Robin, you’re okay.” Raven repeated her words as Robin continued to fight. Raven tightened her grip onto Robin’s shoulders.

“Grayson!” Robin froze. “You’re dreaming its okay.” Raven’s words came out a meer whisper now. She unlatched herself from Robins back, and walked around him to see his face. He was looking down, his fists still clenched and shoulders stiff. Raven’s hands lifted to Robin’s mask, something she had never imagined doing, but she needed to see. Robin remained frozen as Raven’s hands trembled and grasped both sides of his mask. She pulled it off slowly, revealing Robins closed eyes. Raven let out a shaky breath she didn’t know she was holding and asked “Please?” 

Slowly, Robin opened his eyes, the blue radiating in the darkness around them. He looked around frantically, but Raven grasped his face again. “I’ll protect you.” Raven whispered. Robin closed his blue eyes and nodded, his shoulders relaxing. Raven grasped his gloved hand and pulled him to the floor. She sat with her legs crossed, guiding Robins head to lay on her thigh. He curled up on his side, and let Raven run her hand up and down his back. Soon, his breathing became even and slow against Raven thigh, letting her know he was finally asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I. JUST.LOVE.THESE.BIRDIES!


	5. Encounters

Raven opened her eyes to sunlight seeping in from under her curtains. She stretched her arms out over her head and levitated up to stand. She had spent the whole night in Robin’s mind, rubbing his back, and humming comforting songs. Her back ached, needing the relief of her mattress. Just as she laid face down into her mattress, a obnoxious voice yelled “Breakfast’s ready!” right against her door. With a groan, Raven got up and changed, putting on her cloak. She noticed under her eyes some puffy skin tinted a dark blue and remembered to kill Cyborg for waking up early enough to make breakfast.

As she walked slowly to the living room, her heart pounded in her chest. She had seen Robin without his mask, arguably his most vulnerable. But then again, Robin was the one who found her when she was a lost child, carrying her over miles of rough terrain when her father destroyed the world. That was her most vulnerable state so now maybe they were even? Raven hoped Robin wouldn’t be mad at her or at least let her explain. A sudden panic took Raven’s body over. What if she ruined everything? What if he left this morning without a trace? She raced down the corridor of the boys rooms again, needing to see Robin, to talk to him privately. 

His door was shut, nothing out of the ordinary. Hesitant, Raven dropped down onto the floor and raised her fist up to knock.

“Hey,” A low voice from behind her scared her, defensively shielding herself against Robins door. She shook her head. This wasn’t Robin’s mind anymore, that wasn’t Slade. As she turned around, Robin stepped back from Raven, giving her the space he thought she needed. With his mask on, Robin’s forehead crease was more noticeable than ever. He was frowning, looking at Raven’s boots. Raven hadn’t meant to react that way to her team leader. He snuck up on her, but he never frightened her. She slowly lowered her arms, taking a deep breath before speaking.

“I won’t tell anyone,” Raven promised him, her eyes forceful to get her message across. Robin’s brows relaxed, and his smile grew. He reached out for Raven’s hand, gently grasping it and lifting it up between them.

“Thank you.” Raven squeezed Robin’s hand before letting go.

“Anytime.” They stood there, acknowledging the bond they’ve created but unknowing what to do with it. It seemed to be a stalemate. Robin swayed back and forth on his heel and to his toes, scratching the back of his head until finally speaking. 

“Do you mind-” He pointed toward his closed door, the one Raven had been standing in front of.

“Oh,” Raven quickly moved out of the way. Robin gave her a small smile and walked in, closing the door behind him quickly. Raven saw the shadows of his feet stand still against the back of the door, probably listening for her to leave. She understood his continued caution and left Robin alone.

Alone was exactly how Raven felt for the next month. In the aftermath of Raven’s journey into his head, Robin spent his time surrounded by the big 3. His energy level seemed to rise, meaning he was sleeping again, and Raven noticed it in the form of his absence from her. Somehow, Raven helping Robin turned him away from her, livening up while leaving Raven to swallow herself up again. She didn’t mean for that to happen, but the one person who she truly thought she had a connection with was slowly forgetting about her. At least, that’s what Raven thought. It was a warm spring evening when Raven sat on the edge of the towers island, feet dangling above the water. From far behind her, she could hear shrieks of laughter from her teammates. They had been celebrating a victory, or really, unwinding from a tough day. Raven wasn’t in the mood to be around her friends, so she had diverged and enjoyed the puffy white clouds moving slowly across the sky. The hood of her cloak laid flat against her back letting the sun brighten her violet hair. Her hands grasped a book she picked up at the public library. The summary on the back cover wrote “A bittersweet book depicting what happens when you fall for the wrong person.” 

Raven didn’t start reading these generic new age young adult books until she began wondering about her relationship with Robin. Her ancient texts didn’t have a section titled “What to do if your attractive best friend calls you cute.” She also checked out a couple of psychology textbooks, but she began self diagnosing herself instead. Her best bet was to read about other teenage girls interactions with boys, and hope her and Robin would “stumble into each other in the hallway” or “lock eyes across the room.” Although some stories were genuinely entertaining, they lacked information on what to say to a boy whose secret identity has been revealed in a dream? Raven cursed under her breath for being only half human and shut the book.

As Raven began to stand, frustrated that the answers she needed weren’t right in front of her, she noticed a shadow approaching her. The spiked hair and broad shoulders gave Robin away and Raven froze in place. The book was hidden slightly in her cloak, but she couldn’t have Robin ask what she was reading. He could sense if anyone was lying, probably from his training with the Shadowed Superhero from his memories. Her breathing became irregular and out of sheer panic, she flew to her bedroom window, leaving Robin with his hand outstretched grasping at air.


	6. Something's Different

“Back for more?” The white haired librarian whispered to Raven as she plopped down books into the “return” counter. Raven smiled lightly, enjoying the warm energy the librarian created. Behind the desk, the librarian wore a knitted blue sweater with an eye sore of yellow and green patterns sewn in the middle and a named tag reading “Kathy”. She was older, wiser, and judging by the cat hair coating her sweater, loved by many 4 legged felines. She and Raven formed a agreement: If Raven helped retrieve books off tall shelves for her, Kathy would waive any of Raven’s late fees. Recently, situations have gotten worse in Jump CIty, making Raven’s time to read and return in a timely manner an issue. 

“I’m gonna find something to read, shout if you need me.” Said Raven, keeping her regular monotone voice a whisper.

“Oh dear, I cannot shout.” Raven confused for a mere second realized what she had said and blushed. Embarrassed, Raven turned a slight pink and mumbled sorry to Kathy. The librarian giggled in return, enjoying the rare banter she received during work. 

 

It was mid afternoon on a Wednesday, so no one else occupied the library. Raven and Kathy silently read 200 feet apart with Raven sitting in her favorite back corner and Kathy at the front desk. Tactically, Raven was in the best position, keeping an eye on the front door from one aisle and the side door from the other. This was a rare time for Raven to get away form the tower and specifically away from one spikey haired leader. After the last incident, Robin kept an eye on Raven at all times. He made sure to keep his distance too, knowing pushing Raven wasn't a good move as a leader and as a friend. The last time they spoke outside of a combat situation was a week ago where Robin praised her quick thinking during combat. Raven had just nodded and walked back to her room, not acknowledging the hand he stuck out for her to shake. Raven replayed that moment in her head often believing she had diminished their friendship down to that: a handshake. Not a hug or high five even? She walked away that night with watery eyes and clenched fists.

Raven readjusted her lengthy cloak to make sure she wasn't sitting on it as she opened up her bookmarked page. She had chosen a new style of book this time, recommended by Kathy. It was a murder mystery. The crime fighter in Raven had already figured out who it was, but the bookworm needed to know how it would unfold. Just before the killer is caught, Raven heard Kathy speak up.

“How can I help you?” Raven looked up to see Kathy speaking to a boy wearing jeans and a black hoodie over his head. She thought nothing of it and continued to read. Within the span of a paragraph, the boy had walked over to Raven and sat down next to her. Raven’s eyebrows furrowed, awaiting to be interrupted by the boy. He sat there and waited patiently for Raven to finish her book. As she set it down in her lap, she realized she only knew one person who would let her finish her book in silence. Robin.

But he was out of uniform. So was this Dick Grayson she was seeing instead? He slowly swiped the hood off his head to reveal he was still wearing the mask over his eyes. Raven’s heart sunk looking at him. He was nervous for sure, his hands fiddling with the ends of his sleeves. He didn’t know where to look either. His head turned upwards and scanned the plain architecture quickly. Then he observed the front door and the side door.

“You can keep an eye on the front while securing the side door from here.” Robin whispered his head turned away from Raven. She smiled.

“Where would Robin sit?” she whispered back, her eyes deeply focused on his profile. He turned his head abruptly to look at Raven.

“What do you mean?” Raven gently lifted her left hand and placed it on Robin’s shoulder.

“It was my 7th week when you taught me that. It was the first time we all went out to eat.” It was Robin’s turn to smile. 

“You remember that?” 

“Obviously.” Raven said gesturing to both exits with her chin. 

“Oh yeah.” Robin blushed and looked down at his hands in his lap. Raven kept her hand on his shoulder for another minute, not wanting to let go of this Robin. The awkward and adorable blushing teenage boy that sat right next to her that was usually locked up behind that mask. She wished he would have taken it off, to go fully undercover as a regular teen. But then again, what would a regular teen be doing with Raven from the Teen Titans in a library? The entire cities population knew not to disturb Raven, especially before the afternoon so her conversing with him looked suspicious already. Not like anyone was there to witness anything but Robin was always safe and never sorry. 

“Where did you get the clothes?” Ravens hand tugged on the hoodies fabric, feeling the cheap cotton blend.

“I bought something online, thinking maybe I’d need it someday.”

“Maybe I could find something too.” Raven’s heart rate spiked as the words left her mouth. The idea of concealing her identity crossed her mind before, but she never fully committed. Self doubt clouded her mind when considering being someone else seeing as she just barely figured out who she was. But she imagined seeing Robin’s blue eyes shine in the afternoon sun and her heart rate slowed back down. 

“Would you want to hang out then? You know, not as titans, just teens?” Robin shyly asked. Raven’s eyes watered up thinking how badly Robin needed that. Just one night off from holding up the world on his shoulders. She quickly wiped under her eyes and nodded, but when she realized he wasn’t looking at her, she hugged his masculine arm. Her head laid on his shoulder and she nodded again, scared to use her voice. Robin used his free arm and grasped both of Raven’s tiny hands into his. “Then it’s a date.” He whispered into her hair. His hand released Ravens, making Raven sit back up. Her doe eyes were tinted red and her cheeks puffed more than usual. He gave Raven one last smile before putting on his hood, standing up, and walking out the same way he came in. 

Raven wiped her eyes again and smoothed down her hair. She waited a couple of minutes before standing up and walking over to Kathy with the finished book in hand. Kathy looked up from her medieval themed novel and smiled.

“That was quick! I used to be able to read much faster when I was your age. Now I have to deal with these darn glasses sliding off my nose!” Raven used her power to gently adjust Kathy's glasses. “Thank you, my dear. You always know how to help.”

“I actually need your help this time.” Kathy set her book down, inserted her cat eared bookmark into the centerfold, and closed it. She placed her elbows on her desk and made eye contact with Raven.

“I’m all ears.” 

“Could I have your address? I wanted to buy clothing online, but I can’t ship it to the Titan Tower.” Kathy’s eyebrows shot up.

“That’s all!? Of course!” She smiled big and grabbed a pencil and paper. 

“And your phone number as well?” Raven had bought many things online before, books, bath bombs, hair combs. But she didn’t want any clothing to be linked back to her. If she was going to create a secret identity, she was going to do it right. 

“Here you go sweetie..” She handed Raven the piece of paper. Raven knew the neighborhood. It was a poorer area, full of older generations who spent their money on bingo and cat food. Although nothing was worth while to steal, thieves often lurked around there preying on the defenseless. Raven reached over the counter and grabbed a pen and a post it note. She quickly jotted down the phone number for the Titan tower in big bold writing.

“You can call me anytime anything arrives and I’ll come as soon as possible to pick it up. Again thank you.” Raven posted the phone number onto the unused computer monitor and hurried out into the street, suddenly excited to create a new identity. It could be an escape. She could pretend she was fully human, that her father never took over the universe, that her emotions couldn’t cause mass destruction. Boy wonders last words lingered in her mind as she flew back to the tower with a small grin plastered on her face. "It's a date"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry its been a while


	7. Brand New

2 weeks later, Kathy had rang up the tower asking for Raven excitedly. Multiple packages had come in, and Raven matched Kathy’s enthusiasm. She had dropped everything, leaving her friends during lunch, to meet Kathy back at her cozy 2 bedroom home. Entering Kathy’s living room, the cat hair in the air tickled Raven’s nose, making her sneeze. Her packages were laying in the middle of a bright yellow rug, perfectly stacked probably by the mailman. Upon seeing how much space the boxes took up, Raven realized she bought way too much stuff. 

“Is that all mine?” Raven asked, although she knew the answer. She rubbed her face with both hands, and plopped down onto the rug. 

“I couldn’t believe it myself!” Kathy had sat on her dark red loveseat, heaving a fat tuxedo cat onto her lap. Raven spent the whole afternoon opening packages, trying on clothes she bought, and unwillingly modeling them for Kathy. It was the least she could do for her trouble. Kathy’s smile brightened at the new boots Raven bought. They were black leathered and short with a yellow threaded seam. 

“Doc martens have been around since my day! I think I still have a pair somewhere.” Kathy said, rejoicing at Raven’s truth to branding. At the end of the unpacking, Raven’s brand new clothes were thrown across an plastic covered armchair in the corner. Most items were black, except the jean shorts and jacket. It was then Raven realized she was missing something.

“Missing something?” Kathy had a playful grin on her face reading Raven’s mind perfectly.From under the cushion next to her, the last, and arguably the most important package appeared. Raven’s eyebrows perked up. “Sorry, I just had to save the best for last.” Kathy smiled genuinely and tossed the package over to Raven. On it, Real Hair for Real Women was pasted across the top, which meant Kathy knew what was in it already. Raven wasted no time and ripped the top open. She reached in and pulled out the silky and lengthy pitch black wig that would perfectly cover her edgy purple bob. Finding a mirror, Raven flipped the wig on and shoved any stray hairs away. Splitting the wig down the middle, Raven brushed her new hair to the front and ran her fingers through it. She looked into the mirror for a long time, smiling at how unrecognizable she was. 

“Let me see!” Kathy exclaimed impatiently. Raven walked over with a smile plastered on her face. “Wow, it looks so real!” Unconsciously, Raven played with the ends of her new waist length hair. 

“Can I pass for human?” Raven asked. Kathy studied her for a second and made contact with Raven’s forehead. Raven let out a big sigh. “Forgot about that,” she mumbled, and moved the red gem down to her chest under her leotard. “Now?” Kathy smiled.

“Yes, Raven you look beautiful.” 

“Oh wait, I’m not Raven in this wig.”

“Right, right. Did you come up with a name?” Raven didn’t think about it too much before hand. 

“Well, what name comes to mind when you see me?” Raven asked.Kathy studied her for some time.

“Jennifer? Kristen? Mary?” Raven shook her head. None of them felt right. “Well maybe it's best to look for names similar to yours own? Something you will remember. The best lies are partially true.” Raven closed her eyes and imagined the human she wanted to be. Independent, tea enthusiast, librarian maybe? She envisioned herself fully human, never becoming a titan. A normal human girl thinking about her future in society. A full name came to mind.

“Rachel Roth.” Raven stated. 

“Oh, sweetie, I love it!” Kathy clapped her hands together and held them in front of her big smile. Raven smiled as well and began using her powers to pack all her clothing into one big box. “Wait! Rachel doesn’t have powers!” Kathy exclaimed. A pair of shorts dropped in mid flight in realization. Awkwardly, Raven, or rather Rachel, walked over and picked up the shorts, tossing them into the box. She stood over the box for a second before taking the wig off and placing it gently in as well. 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - 

Raven flew back home with her giant box floating next to her. She had made it to her room without alarming any of her teammates of her presence. Slowly, she hung up each article of clothing into her closet by hand. She had done it. She had the clothes, the boots, the hair and even the name. All she needed now was to let Robin know. 

She walked out of her room confidently, turning down the hallway to Robin’s room. She knocked on his door without hesitation this time. “Come in!” Raven used to powers to move Robins heavy door to the side and she stepped in. Robin’s room was clean, organized and bright, opposite of Ravens. Something about it was also cold. Robin had no personal belongings laying around, and his closet door was open to reveal rows of the same outfits. Raven remembered when Robin was gone and the entirety of the titans tried on his colorful clothing, finding out how comfortable it was and how important the mask became to the uniform. Robin emerged from his bathroom, slipping his gloves on.

“Sorry, I was changing.”

“So you yelled come in?” Raven cocked an eyebrow at Robin.

“I was just putting on my mask, plus I knew it was you.” Robin sat down at the edge of his bed and motioned Raven to do the same. She levitated over and gently lowered herself next to Robin. 

“How’d you know it was me?”

“Easy. Cyborg and Beastboy usually just shout, Starfire’s knocks are more forceful and constant until I respond, unlike yours which are calm and slow, and in intervals of three.”   
“Information like that made me imagine your head was full of filing cabinets not-” Raven stopped herself realizing the next words out of her mouth needed to be chosen carefully. Robin saw her hesitation and finished for her.

“Not death and darkness?” He tried to say lightly. Raven’s eyes grew wide as she whipped her head to look at Robin. “Its okay, my mind scares me too.” Robin whispered as he placed a hand on Raven’s shoulder to comfort them both. Raven instantly grew cold at the memory of being in Robin’s mind. The trauma that he carried around made Raven’s heart ache and she said the words Robin had been telling himself for years. 

“I could’ve saved them.” Raven whispered to Robin. He started shaking his head. “I just didn’t have my powers! I’m so sorry Robin!” Unknowingly Raven began to cry. Robin pulled her into his chest and rocked her back and forth.

“I wish you didn’t understand that feeling. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” Robin said holding onto a sobbing Raven. In her frantic state, a wave of clarity and embarrassment washed over her. Of course she couldn’t have saved Robin’s parents, they were in his head, a tragic memory Robin would have for the rest of his life. She pushed away from Robin and wiped her eyes.

“Sorry.” Raven said as she shifted awkwardly on Robins bed. She tried to cover her bright red swollen face, but Robin’s gloved hand gently twisted it back to face him.   
“I thought I could save them too, but I couldn’t.” She was staring into Robin’s eyes, feelin the icy blues piercing through his mask. She blushed feeling ridiculous under his stare. 

“I’ll tell you everything outside of this tower, outside of these clothes.” Robin promised. Raven nodded slowly.

“I’m ready whenever you are.” Raven said trying to remain casual. Robin studied her face, then settled at her forehead. His mask stretched under his widening eyes. 

“Where is it!?” He got off his bed and began searching the floor.

“Where is what?” Raven’s eyebrows scrunched up in confusion until she felt what was missing from her face. “Oh don’t worry,” she stretched the neckline of her leotard to show Robin where the crystal was placed. Robin blushed at the revealing of the new placement of the crystal. “I can’t be Rachel Roth, normal teenage girl, with a chakra crystal on my forehead.” Robin sat back down and smirked.

“Rachel Roth huh?”

“Yeah, it was my mother's last name. I should probably move my gem back now.” She picked the gem up and forced it back on her forehead. 

“So, Rachel, would you want to grab lunch tomorrow?”

“Is this Robin asking or-”

“No,” Robin reached up and took his mask off nonchalantly. “Sorry, we haven’t been probably introduced. I’m Dick, DIck Grayson.” Raven’s mouth dropped open at how casually Robin had revealed his secret identity to her. His blue eyes contrasted his jet black hair and that made Raven’s heart skip a couple of beats. 

“H-hey.” 

“So what do you say?”

“I’ll see you at lunch.” Raven smiled one last time at Robin before walking back to her room to plan what to wear for a lunch with Rob- no with Dick Grayson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im trying to get back in the game of writing!  
> Thank you for being patient!


	8. Being Human

Raven’s bath water was cold now, but she couldn’t bring herself to step out. Today was the day she would deput Rachel Roth, and if that wasn’t scary enough, DIck Grayson was going to be there looking really good. That’s the conclusion Raven came to the night before, Dick Grayson, and by default Robin, was attractive. So attractive, that Raven could barely sleep. She slept in half hour intervals, those blue eyes haunting her dreams. The problem wasn’t even the blue eyes, but it was who they belonged to. Robin, her team leader, maybe even her best friend, that's who they belonged to. And she was blushing, thinking about those eyes staring back at her all of lunch. She shook her head violently trying to get those thoughts out of her head. Especially because of her current naked state. She was thinking about Robin in the bath? Raven’s stomach turned at the realization and she shot out of the tub, covering herself up quickly. 

She sat on her bed in a towel, staring at the outfit she had picked out. She went for a gothic feel, staying true to herself. It was a relatively simple outfit, including high waisted black jean shorts, a black long sleeve shirt she would tuck in, and her new favorite boots. She had brushed her wig and hung it up on the hook her cloak would usually rest. She looked at the clock, seeing she only had half an hour before needing to meet Dick at the burger place they agreed on. 

She began putting on her outfit when a problem popped into her head. How was she going to leave the island without flying? Cursing at herself, she figured she needed to become Rachel Roth somewhere else. She threw on her usual leotard and cloak combo and tossed everything she needed to be Rachel into a box. Raven raced over to Kathy’s house, knocking on the front door. Kathy answered quickly, hearing the urgency of the knock.

“Raven, what are you doing here?” She asked holding a tabby cat that Raven hadn’t seen before. 

“I need some uh- girl advice?” 

“Oh sweetie, come in come in!” Raven explained the situation as quickly as possible and Kathy was happy to help. 

“Go get dressed, and remember to hide that gem.” Raven listened to Kathy’s instructions. She striped in Kathy’s pink bathroom, cringing at the floral bath curtain. Gently folding her leotard and cloak on top of the sink, Raven began her transformation. She slipped on her black jean shorts and clasped them right below her belly button. They seemed to be too tight, and would probably leave a mark on her skin later. Next, Raven pulled the long sleeve shirt on and sighed when the shirt wasn’t long enough to tuck in. She kept pulling it down to try and stretch the fabric last minute, but it didn’t work. Her soft flat purple boots were replaced with her new chunky doc martens, making every step she took commanding and intimidating. She moved her gem down to her chest and stared into the mirror for a long while. It felt odd without the gem stamped onto her forehead, making her a little insecure. She shook off the feeling and pinned all of her hair back. The beautiful wig was the final item that would complete Raven’s change into Rachel Roth. As she situated the hair on her head, Raven saw how human she could actually look. She parted her wig down the middle and stepped out for Kathy to see. 

“Look at you! Oh my lord!” Kathy rejoiced from the sofa, surrounded by her two cats.

“All human now.” Raven said awkwardly, patting her wig in an itchy area. 

“Well you go out and have fun ok? I’ll keep you’re stuff safe.” 

“Thank you so much Kathy, do you want any food? I’ll bring you back something.”

“Oh no sweetie, I’ll be fine! Now go, you’re going to be late!”

Raven looked at the titan communicator to see that she was in fact running late. Just as she was about to fly out, she realized she couldn’t. She had to walk, maybe run. She texted Robin, letting him know she would be late. He instantly texted back “Someone’s not used to being human.” Rav- Well, Rachel, rolled her eyes and descended down Kathy’s front porch steps. The wind blew her black long hair back, making her instantly grab then ends and hold them tightly in front of her. Looking like she was holding onto her hair for dear life, Raven observed other people on the street. Some walked in pairs, laughing and not paying attention to where they were going. The lone walkers had earbuds in and only focused to the things in front of them. She wondered what kind of music they listened to, but also what kind of music she should begin listening to. If tonight went well, she could be Rachel Roth more often, but she would have to learn to be normal, to blend in. 

She reached her destination late, as she expected. The sweat from her palms cascaded down her fingers, making her wipe them against her shorts. Peaking in, she saw black spikey hair over a booth. Of course he would already be there. With a slow exhale of breathe, Raven faked a confident stride into the restaurant. The bell strung up on the door rang, alerting the workers and Dick that she had arrived. Dick had looked up, saw Rachel, glanced back down at the menu he was grasping and then stiffened. His blue eyes had widened as he looked back up at his barely recognizable teammate. Rachel/Raven by that time had reached the booth which was located in the back, and looked deep into the blue oceans staring at her. 

“Rachel?” he asked. She nodded shyly, blushing under his intense gaze. He quickly motioned for her to sit across from him, and she thanked him under her breath. She stared at her lap, unknowing of how to continue the interaction. 

“Is that real hair?” Raven looked up and smiled, secretly thanking him for starting first.

“Yeah, um you can really get anything online.” Hearing her own monotone voice made her wince.

“Hey, don’t worry. If I didn’t recognize you, others won’t just from your voice.” He reached an arm across the table, as if to grab Raven but hesitated half way through, leaving it in the middle. She smiled at the comfort Dick’s words brought her. 

“Were you waiting long?” Raven let out a little guilt seep through her words  
.  
“I think the waiter thought I was being stood up.” Dick smirked as he took a sip of the single water he got. Raven relaxed her shoulders and placed her elbows on the table. 

“Walking here was weird. People were listening to music or holding hands and-”

“Not on high alert?”

“Yes!” Raven exclaimed. She looked around the resturant to make sure no one heard her outburst. Dick chuckled.

“Yeah, my favorite part is just walking through a crowd with no one staring.”

“Really?” Raven tilted her head slightly. 

“Ye-”

“But your eyes-”

“What about them?” DIck said in a small voice. He looked down into his lap just as Raven did only moments ago. 

“They’re really - oh gosh I can’t come up with a better word than pretty. You have pretty eyes, and I know I’d pick them out of a crowd.” Raven’s cheeks heated up again because she was rambling. The nerves she tried to shake off before entering the restaurant popped back up and her sweaty palm covering her mouth was the only thing that stopped her from continuing. 

“Raven not being able to come up with a better word than pretty?” He whispered low enough for her to hear. She sat still, mortified that she called her team leaders eyes pretty. When Dick looked up, his bright, mesmerizing, potentially enchanting? But 100% pretty eyes looked at Raven with amusement and she couldn’t look away. 

“Are we ready to order?” A cheery voice broke the trance both titans were in. 

“Yes,” Dick seamlessly recovered and ordered for both of them. They had been to this burger joint before, so he knew Raven’s usual order. The waitress did a double take to check if Raven really wanted what Dick had ordered for her, and she nodded and signed thank you to the waitress. 

“Oh!” The waitress smiled big and walked away. 

“What was that?” Dick asked.

“You ordered for me.”

“Yes?” A confused expression played on his face.

“You ordered a salad for me,” Dick’s eyes widened with the realization of how he must have sounded to the waitress. 

“Shit,” he cursed under his breath, stunning Raven. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. You knew what I liked and ordered it for me so I didn’t have to speak,” Raven leaned back in her seat, “And then I saved you from looking like an asshole, so I’d say we’re pretty even.” 

It was Dick’s turn to be stunned.

“Wait, you know how to sign?” 

“Well I was reading-”

“Would’ve never guessed.” 

“Watch it.” Raven pointed aggressively at Dick as a warning. 

“Ok, go on !” He held his hands up defensively but laughed. They continued like that, casually joking with one another and discussing new things they usually wouldn’t talk about. Raven spoke about Kathy, and her fat cats. Dick spoke about his favorite spots to sneak out to at night, promising to show them to her soon. When their food came, they devoured everything quickly, just to be able to talk to each other again. Raven found out Dick had been secretly sneaking out ever since she appeared in his nightmare. He would wear a hoodie just in case he felt too exposed and his mask was securely in his pocket at all times. 

“Why did you have your mask on in the library?” Raven asked as she reached over to grab some of Dick’s leftover fries.

“I needed you to recognize me.” 

“I would’ve known it was you either way.” Raven responded matter of factly.

“Well, I needed you to see through the mask.” Raven sat there studying exactly what he meant.

“I did.” She smiled gently. 

“I know.” He smiled back shyly. 

After a long needed pause, Raven looked out a window. “We should get going,” she said witnessing the moon high in the sky. Dick took out his wallet and insisted on paying for both of them. He got up and held his hand out to Raven to help her out of the booth. As it turned out, sitting for 2 hours in one spot made the half demons’ butt numb and knees weak. Thankful for Dick’s help, Rachel squeezed his outstretched hand and let go, blushing at the skin on skin contact. Usually, Dick’s hands are covered in green gloves, creating a barrier. For the first time, Raven felt the warmth of his strong hands and she wished she hadn’t let go. 

Exiting the restaurant, Dick led Raven to the parking lot, where a black motorbike was casually awaiting their arrival. 

“Where to next?” Raven asked suddenly, not wanting the night to end. Dick handed her a helmet and smiled. 

“It’s a surprise.” A classic Robin smirk appeared on his face as he got on the motorbike and motioned for Raven to join. Quickly, she put on the helmet, making sure her wig wouldn’t fly off, and joined Dick on the bike. She felt a deja vu as she wrapped her arms around Dick’s waist and they drove off into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love this pair of besties sooo much   
> Only a couple of chapters left though!


	9. Boyish Wonder

Dick knew he could trust Raven from the moment he met her. When he would stare into her big doe eyes, a sense of peace would overcome him. So letting Raven into his head and now telling her all about his life after his parents death came naturally. There was no other explanation for why Dick had brought Raven, or rather Rachel, to his secret rooftop spot and spilled his guts about his preadolescence. It was a lot to take in, but Raven would stop him once in a while for clarification, which let Dick know she was really listening. 

“And that’s how I ended up here. Leader of the titans.” Dick said as if he was concluding an essay. They were sitting on a blanket Dick had decided to bring along last minute as he remembered that Raven kept her legs bare and probably wouldn’t enjoy sitting on cold concrete. She sat cross legged facing Dick, but he was perpendicular to her, leaned up against a short wall with one leg stretched out and his other bent at the knee. The moon was high in the sky, illuminating Raven’s porcelain skin and the blues in Dick’s eyes. The light helped Dick see Raven's hand reach out to grasp his forearm in comfort. 

“And you’re the best leader I could ask for.” Dick turned to her and smiled appreciating both the gesture and kind words. His free hand came up to lay on top of Raven's as he whispered a low “thank you.” 

After a brief silence, Dick tried to lighten the gloomy mood. “But hey right now, I’m not your leader, I’m a normal teenage boy hanging out with a um- girl.” He stuttered at the last part, refraining from saying the word cute. He had casually called their hang out a date earlier, but the longer they sat together, the more the word “date” made sense. They went out to eat and are getting to know each other. Now they are sitting in a close proximity at night looking into each others eyes. Dick gulped audibly as he witnessed Raven's face quirk to the side like a curious puppy. 

“And what do normal teenage boys do when they’re hanging out with um girls?” Raven said slowly, phrasing the question strategically to get a reaction. Dick wanted to say he didn’t know, but the blush on his cheeks gave him away. 

“You know-”

“But I don’t”

“Just normal-”

“Normal?” 

“Yeah like-”

“Is this normal?” She vaguely gestured to her surroundings.

“No, most people can’t get up here.” 

“I want to try something normal.” Raven said, keeping the statement open ended. 

“Do you have anything in mind?” Dick asked more into the air than towards her. Raven did in fact have something in mind, but she wasn’t going to say it outloud. For the past couple of months, Raven had been reading teenage coming of age stories in hopes of understanding what its like to be a “normal” teenager. Every characters story was different, but somehow kissing was the one common thing. Whether it was the cliche of spin the bottle, or an epic end of the story kiss like in fairy tales, kissing seemed to be a common action teenagers were supposed to do. Raven sat there contemplating if she should even request such a thing. He was her team leader for crying out loud. But then again, he said “Right now” he wasn’t. Raven brought her hands up to her face and without making any noise, she nodded. 

“You’re going to make me guess huh?” Dick placed a cocky smirk on his face knowing it wasn’t going to be too hard. He was a pro at guessing. Or well, a pro at knowing Raven. What Raven didn’t know was that she was also a pro at understanding Robin. She always knew what he needed without him ever needing to explain himself. Like tonight, she knew he needed to be a teenager again. It was an unspoken bond that they shared. 

“It’s not guessing if you already know,” Raven whispered into her hands. Suddenly a warm hand slid across Raven’s back, wrapping her tightly into Dick’s side. 

“Here’s the thing Raven, we aren’t normal.” He whispered into her hair. 

“That sucks.” Raven stated in her monotone voice, trying to cover up the disappointment in her voice. 

“It does not,” Dick let go of Raven to look her in the eyes, “Normal teenagers right now are sleeping because its a school night. You and me, aren’t normal and look at the amazing things we get to do. Sure its rarely this calm, but I think this, right here, is the reason everything is worth it.”

“You’re being vague. ‘This’, and ‘everything’ elaborate” Raven gestured for Dick to continue. He let out a loud sigh and looked up at the stars.

“By ‘this’ I mean this moment in time. I’m watching the stars, talking about things that I never could have before with my best friend.” 

“Best friend?” Raven grinned like an idiot, but she didn’t care. She was staring at him eyes bright and teeth gleaming in the moonlight. Dick laughed at the sight.

“Of course you’re my best friend.” 

“Good.” Raven nodded quickly, wiping the smile off her face. 

“Good.” Dick kept his smile plastered on his face. Under his stare, Raven’s face heated up and she quickly turned her attention to the stars again. 

“And ‘everything’? Raven asked again, seeing as Dick didn’t fully answer her previously.

“The bullshit we gotta deal with.” Raven nodded knowingly in agreement.

“Is that why you started doing this, taking off the mask, becoming Dick again?”

“I never stopped being Dick, and you’re never going to stop being Raven.” 

“I’m Rachel right now.” Rachel said matter of factly.

“I wholeheartedly disagree. You’re Raven in a wig and some tight shorts. Underneath, you are still all Raven.” Rachel crossed her arms like a child and frowned at Dick’s observation. “But hey,” Dick placed his hand on Raven’s shoulder, “It’s who you are, nothing can change that, and I don’t want you to change. This” he vaguely gestured to Raven’s outfit, “isn’t about becoming a different person.” 

“Why do you get to be two different people and not me?” Raven questioned. 

“Robin is my outer shell. He’s my Rachel Roth.” 

“Do you not like me as Rachel?” Rachel hung her head. 

“You aren’t Rachel to me,” Dick sighed. “Look, I don’t think what I’m trying to say is coming out properly.” He adjusted himself to face Raven. She looked up with a small frown resting on her face. He placed his hands on either side of Raven's head and his eyes wandered over hers, analyzing her for a second. Suddenly, he was staring deep into her eyes and could feel the heat of Ravens cheek rising under his thumb. As he began to lean in, Raven closed her eyes and waited for his lips to crash into hers. She felt his soft lips brush hers as he whispered, “Let me show you what I mean.” He closed the gap between them and kissed her with all the passion he could muster. Raven was stunned by the force but quickly relaxed into his lips, moving hers awkwardly with his. Neither of them had a lot of experience with kissing, so they just continued to react to each other. 

The soon to be out of breathe Raven placed her petite hands on Dicks strong shoulders and pushed him away slightly. She smiled at him, still a little dazed, and leaned her forehead against his.

“We should head back,” was all Raven could muster up to say before her heart rate regulated. Dick nodded, making their foreheads move together. He was the first to stand up, offering Raven a hand. They packed up and rode back to the tower in complete yet comfortable silence. Both titans felt a certain satisfaction deep down in their guts, but they knew the bubble would pop soon. For Raven, it popped the second she got off Dick’s bike. 

“I don’t know where to -” She reached for her wig moved it around on her head in a big circle, enjoying the slight scratchy feel against her scalp. 

“I'll just put it with my stuff.” Dick reached out a hand and Raven gladly removed the wig. Dick maneuvered them into an entrance rarely used and they climbed up to their rooms silently. Raven used this time to float, seeing as her human boots were made for stomping, not sneaking. Raven didn’t know why, but her entire body started to shake as she stared at the back of her team leaders head. Nerves that she swallowed before entering the restaurant leaped to the surface and she froze in the dark hallway. Dick, feeling no presence behind him turned around to find a frozen and scared Raven and his heart sank to the pit of his stomach.

He knew taking Raven out tonight was a risky move when it came to their friendship, but he couldn’t stop himself. Something about the way she smiled that one morning in the tea shop made him want to be closer to her. Raven often gave the cold shoulder to the other titans, but Dick always felt a warmth when he looked at her. She would read with her knees pulled up to her chest and a little frown would form on her face which made Dick want to walk over and kiss the frown goodbye. So naturally, Dick, at his most vulnerable, acted on the urges he usually held back on: He kissed Raven. And it felt even better than he imagined. It was awkward at first but even 20 minutes after, he could still feel the tingling on his lips.

But now he stood in a dark corridor with a nerve wracked Raven and he wondered if it was worth it. Did he put his need to kiss her, to feel her soft gentle lips on his, over her need for comfort? Dick was in the power position here. He was the team leader, the tough dominate male of the group, yet there he stood looking at Raven completely powerless. His brain shut off and after a minute of contemplating, his face mirrored Ravens in complete shock.

Raven’s mind was racing as well. She hadn’t had time to process the kiss with Boy Wonder until just then. Her team leader kissed her, and she happily kissed back. Her numb lips pressed together and missed having another between them. Her eyes grew wide at the realization: she wanted to kiss Dick again. And again. And maybe even a few more times after that. She finally looked up to spot Dick looking at her, trying to desperately read her expression. Raven slowly planted herself back on the ground and walked over to Dick.

Dick let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding and smiled as Raven came out of her trance and stood in front of him. A small smile danced on her lips and he couldn’t help but stare at them. She lifted her hand to his cheek, and cupped the back on his head. Without saying a word, Raven leaned up towards Dick and placed her lips against his. Dick smiled under the kiss and pressed his lips back against hers. They stood there enjoying their slow gentle kiss until they heard someone clear their throat. 

Dick was the first to react, spinning around to face the noise. There stood Cyborg, his mouth set in a wide grin that reached his eyes. 

“Late night love birds?” 

Dick looked over to Raven who had hid behind him and was now trying to cover her red cheeks with both hands. “Um, we were just going to bed.” 

“Oh a sleepover huh?” Cyborg winked and Raven punched Dick in the shoulder. 

“No,NO uh separate beds!” Dick tried to explain in a panic. “Uh goodnight Raven, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Don’t let the bedbugs bite.” Raven said using her inexpressive tone. Dick gave one quick wave to both titans and sped walked back to his room.

Raven finally got the courage to look up at Cyborg and saw his expression had changed. Although he wanted to tease her, he saw how uncomfortable she was and wasn’t going to press her. 

“Don’t worry, your secret's safe with me.” And on that note, Cyborg turned down the hall back to his room, leaving a mildly relieved Raven all by herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me whatcha think!   
> Also  
> I'm really bad at regular uploading BUT IM WORKING ON IT I SWEAR!!!


	10. Aftermath

Most of Raven’s morning consisted of walking to Kathy’s, telling her everything that happened, and then walking back. Even though she was Raven, not Rachel Roth, she decided to use her legs more than her powers. With Cyborgs help, Raven had downloaded some music onto her titan communicator in exchange for some details from her date with Robin the night before. 

“Um what do you want to know?” She remembered asking Cyborg.

“Where did he take you? Is he as bossy on a date? Did he respect you? WAIT Do I need to kick his ass? Bc Rae I will dest-” Cyborg had gotten himself rallied up.

“No, no nothing like that. He was himself. Um we ate, talked, changed locations, talked and uh yeah.” Raven had rubbed the back of her neck in hopes he didn’t ask for more.

“Rob and Rae huh? Honestly I never saw it, but I guess last night was proof enough.” Raven’s face dropped. 

“Never saw it?” She looked up at him with worried eyes, all of her insecurities rising to the surface. “Elaborate please.” She whispered.

“Well like, everyone thought it was going to be Robin and Star, but obviously he doesn’t like her like he likes you.” Raven’s scrunched up her face,evaluating Cyborgs words   
carefully so he continued. “I mean she was his first kiss but she’s so happy all the time. I don’t know too much about Robin’s past, but you seem more equipped to handle it.”

“Thanks I guess.” 

“Robrae has a nice ring to it though! Oooo wait until people find out-”

“No! please.”

“Hey, look I’m just teasing really. I won’t tell anyone until you guys are ready to be open about your whatever it is.” It was nice knowing she had such an understanding friend on her side.

“Thanks Cy.” Raven gave him a small smile and they continued downloading songs.

She smiled at the recent memory as she walked through the park, her music blasting through into her ears. Her music choice, just like her reading, varied by mood. She chose some upbeat punk songs for her long journey home that really helped time fly by. 

She entered the tower and headed straight for the kitchen. Kathy’s place was pretty far into the city and Raven had broken a sweat wearing her cloak in the bright sun. As she walked in, she noticed everyone sprawled out on the couch in the living room watching a movie she couldn’t recognize. Reaching for the fridge, Raven felt an intense stare hit the back of her head. It wasn’t angry, nor scary, but it was hot like noon in the middle of July. The heat traveled down and turned into a chill that ran down her spine and became warm again when it got to her gut. A warm flush appeared on her entire body soon after and she suddenly forgot how parched she was. All that mattered was the heat, and who was creating it. 

Robin couldn’t help but stare at the girl he’s been searching for all morning. The second he woke up, his mind traveled to the amazing night he had and the amazing girl he had been with. He licked his lips in hopes to remember her chapstick flavor. He quickly got up, showered, and walked at (what he thought was) a reasonably normal pace to Raven’s room. He knocked on her door a couple of times, but he heard no movement from within. Taking a step back, Robin examined the door when a small chuckle escaped Cyborgs mouth. He was at the end of the hallway, watching Robin trying desperately to not look disappointed. 

“Shut it,” Robin hissed at Cyborg.

“She went out for a walk lover boy.” 

“Hmph” Robin turned away quickly from his snickering team mate and sped off into the opposite direction.

Raven tried to keep her movements natural as her whole body tingled from his stare. She grabbed some orange juice, poured it into a cup and levitated over to the couch. Her teammates barely noticed her sit with them, or at least they didn’t want to bring attention to it. From underneath her hood, Raven met Robin’s mask and gave him a small smile. Robin grinned back, happy to have confirmation everything was ok between them.

“Friend Raven! Would you like to join us in a fascinating game?” Starfire beamed, smiling wide.

“No thanks.” Raven spoke at half of Starfire’s volume.

“Actually Star, Raven and I have got to work on her hand to hand combat.” Robin quickly interjected. “You ready?” He asked as he turned to the bewildered Raven.

“Um sure.” Raven had been taught by Robin before, but maybe she did need a refresher. 

They both stood up and walked to the outside training area silently side by side. Raven planted her feet on the ground next to Robin and was about to ask where he wanted to start, but Robin had a different plan. The second the automatic door behind them closed, both of Robin’s gloved hands were on either side of Raven’s face as he leaned in to kiss her. Raven’s eyes opened wide until she realized what was happening. She kissed back and placed one of her hands on his and the other on his chest. She pushed him back gently when she needed to take a breath. 

“Sorry,” Robin began saying before Raven quickly cut him off.

“Don’t be.” She bravely reconnected her lips with his and she felt him smile. It was a brief kiss, but one that reassured Robin of her feelings. “I didn’t know it was going to be this kind of training.” Robin stepped back awkwardly and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Um actually, I know you haven’t been practicing the hand to hand lately so..” His voice trailed off as he looked at the ground. Raven frowned deeply not understanding why he was acting shy all of a sudden. 

“Ok well, you can’t kiss me when we’re training.”

“I can’t?”

“No, of course not. You’re my team leader right now, not the boy I kiss.” 

“Hm, is that my title “boy you kiss”? He used that playful tone of voice she rarely heard.

“See right there!” Raven burst out and pointed accusingly at Robin. “You can’t do that while we are training. I won’t be able to focus.” Raven’s face flushed as she realized what she had said.

“Well we aren’t training right now…” Robin left the statement open ended as he stepped towards Raven again. 

“I’m serious Robin.” She tried to stand her ground, but Robin’s hand was pulling her in by her upper arm and she faltered into his chest.

“So when can I kiss you again?” 

“Depends.” She said with a mischievous smirk. Robin took a precautionary step back.

“On what?” 

Raven’s eyes began to glow a bright white and in a flash rocks from the ground started flying at Robin. He action rolled away and landed in a fighting stance. His eyebrows did that thing that Raven admired and she began chucking things back at him with her powers. 

They trained vigorously for hours, until every muscle in their body ached. Everything from hand to hand combat to defence was covered. Sweat dripped down Robin’s forehead while Raven’s hair stuck to the sweat on the back of her neck. The stood a couple of feet apart, on defence, breathing heavy. Robin was the first to relinquish his stance.

“Nice work Raven.” A smiled grew on his face. Raven relaxed and unclipped her cloak, feeling the heavy fabric leave her body. She rolled her shoulders, then her neck, and sat down on the ground trying to be causal. In reality, Raven was exhausted and really just wanted to sleep. Robin walked over and sat down right next to her. 

“Now?” Robin asked, and Raven turned to face him, her right eyebrow raised. 

“You’re sweaty.” She pointed out.

“So are you.” Robin countered. Raven pretended to contemplate the answer, as if she didn’t want to kiss him right then and there as well.

“I guess.” Robin chuckled and grabbed both sides of Raven's face. Both their heart beats’ raced as their lips touched again. The kiss was slow, seeing as both of them were too tired to put their all into it. Their lips moved together so naturally that when Raven’s tongue accidentally added itself into the equation, Robin didn’t question it. Raven’s hands gripped at Robins shirt and lightly pulled him closer, making Robin confident in adding his tongue too. It became a power struggle, their tongues fighting just as they had done a minute ago. 

Soon, both titans had to stop to get some much needed air. They laughed at their raggedy breathes and Raven leaned her forehead on Robin’s shoulder. Their crazy world had finally stilled for long enough for them to enjoy the silence together. Both titans knew things were different between them, but knew they had to talk about what would have to happen next. But right there, in that stillness, they embraced each others smelly and sweaty company and silently agreed not to burst the bubble they were in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost want to just end it here, on this positive note. This peace is WHAT THEY DESERVED SMH   
> Anyway you guys ready for live action titans?


End file.
